Ruptured pipeline spills crude in Arkansas subdivision, forces evacuations

A ruptured Exxon Mobil pipeline spilled thousands of barrels of crude near an Arkansas subdivision over the weekend, forcing the evacuation of 22 homes, Reuters reported.

The 848-mile Pegasus pipeline, which is capable of transporting more than 90,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Canadian Wabasca Heavy crude from Illinois to Texas, was shut down Friday afternoon after the leak was discovered in the town of Mayflower, Ark.

Exxon did not reveal how much crude oil had spilled, but said Sunday that 12,000 barrels of oil and water had been recovered.

The company deployed 15 vacuum trucks to the scene for cleanup and 33 storage tanks to temporarily store the oil, according to Reuters.

Exxon said crews will have to excavate the area around the pipeline breach before it can estimate how long repairs will take.